WARNING! MASSIVE FLUFF AHEAD!
Math and Hard Details yet to come:I: A Brief History of The UISC, or “The Sector”

In a tightly packed area of space barely a hundred Light Years across, though most improbable methods, over half a dozen sapient races all came to be in contact with one another.

The Sector of space itself was bisected by the ancient remains of a gaseous nebula. On one half the expanse, where three star systems that became aware of one another not long after they began to broadcast out in Radio. While some races take hundreds, if not thousands of years to find another out in the stars, these three began a correspondence with each other at a time when rockets had yet to leave the planets orbit.
Over the next 200 years these races grew up together. Exchanging ideas, culture and advancing at a astonishing rate; over time became known simply as “The Alliance”
On the other side of the Expanse was a world that, against even great improbability, gave rise to two sapient races. Their world was largely divided into two main landmasses separated by an immense ocean. Bother races met one another at roughly the same industrial level and once the war began it seemed it would never end. After centuries of internal war, the two races made an uneasy peace. Fueled by a history of nothing but war and expansion, the unified races set it’s sights quickly to the stars.
Near the middle of the Expanse, was what would be considered a small primitive world with a pre industrial civilization. The planet seemed mineral poor but its asteroids could fuel a war machine for decades.
These mineral rich fields would set the staging ground for inevitable conflict between these two powers.

II: The Tajlan War

The races of “The alliance” having spent over 200 years in radio contact with one another finally reached out to the stars together and began to truly colonize and thrive in space. As they expanded, they soon made contact with a primitive people known as “Trathalans” this dragon like race wished for nothing more then to be left alone and left in peace. They gave timid permission for the races of The Alliance to mine their asteroids as long as they were left alone.
However less then a decade later, a war armada of ships from the Tajlan Empire entered into the system. The Empire, detecting the world long ago, had gambled everything on an overpowering force to quickly win, hold and grow this world for their war machine.
With no formal defenses the system and its planet soon fell and were occupied.
What followed was three years of bloody guerilla warfare by the primitive people against a far superior occupying force. While the nations of the Alliance scrambled to mobilize what space warships they had to fight back.
The war seemed in stalemate until a military coup over through the established leadership of those in charge of the Tajlan Armada. The new leaders sued for peace, wanting to return room to try and over through the dictatorial and fascist leadership of their homeworld.

III: Aftermath and formation of The UISC

What followed was an uneasy peace as the internal war once more gripped the Tajlan Empire. When the dust settled, the Facist government had fallen, but still had strong supporters. A peace treaty was worked out between the two forces and a United Charter drawn up laying out how the two forces would move forward together. Trade, Culture and Ideas began to change and slowly the two Forces grew together as the Union of Inter Steller Civilizations

Now, as they two powers work together still in an uneasy peace, their small Alliance is overshadowed as they come to find themselves in a crowded and chaotic Galaxy. Struggling with internal forces and now external threats they seek to find their place on the Galactic stage.

An Overview of UISC Races and Civilizations

Quatonians: Evolving on a Heavy Gravity world, this race stands at most no higher then 4ft tall. Only vaguely humanoid, they are covered in short fur, stock arms and stumplike legs. Their odd shape has long dictated their society and culture. Heavier then water, they abhor travelling over their oceans both on ships and by Air. As such navel combat has been stagnated, and Aircraft Carries never took on a role.
Their short size reflects a quick mind and short thinking species. While they move slow, they think and act in quick almost spastic methods.
NOTES
In the Military, Quatonians tend to be front line troops. Their robust, stout and compact bodies make them ideal for close quarters combat. Because all other planets in the UISC have a lower gravity, they tend to have a much higher stamina, and, while being smaller, end up doing much physical labor.

Octonas: A more Humanoid race, they stand from 4ft to, at most 5 and half feet. Their appearance is one of an orange-ish skin color, long face and small ‘knobs’ on their heads that would resemble the tufts on Earth Giraffes. While Their neighbor world, Quartian, was high gravity, the Octons’ world was slightly lower gravity, giving them a long lanky appearance despite their stil small statue. After making contact with the Quartian, they began the ultimate long distance relationship. Waiting more then a year for their messages to be received, then even longer for the reply to come back.
NOTES
The Octona have a natural sense of order about all things and are avid perfectionists. Weather it is math, art, science, or music. Each tries, not to be perfect, but to constantly improve and get better at a task. To say to an Octona, that they seem no different at something from one day to the next is seen as a terrible insult.
This usually leads to consternation among the other races in diplomatic affairs. Octonas rarely enlist into ground forces and army positions and are by and large either Administrators or pilots.

Conearians: As short and squat as the Quartian. One might mistake them for a furless version of the race. But they are quite different. Evolving on another High-G world no doubt led to their appearance. When they made contact with the other races, they were significantly farther behind, having just discovered primitive Radio. However in the shared conversations that followed they caught up quickly. Unlike many races, Conerazon seem to have thought about life amongst the stars from even ancient times. They see it as their destiny to spread out to as many worlds as possible.
NOTES
Despite lacking in Tech in the beginning, within a few generations Scientists from Conerazon have surpassed other planets. They seem to have a natural knack for all things mechanical and usually end up in engineering positions. Due to their world also being heavy gravity, many also serve as front line grunts.

Tejlini and Qwintoni: The world of Tajlan is one gripped by Millennia of war. This is due to the world having defied evolution and given rise to two sentient races. Split by two massive oceans, they evolved from a common, aggressive, Mamalian predator millions of years ago. The two races consist of the Feline ‘Tejlini’ and the Wolfish ‘Qwintoni’ although they still both share several common physical traits. Two sets of ears, one on the side of their heads, and one on top; a row of velvet tufted bony ridges down their head, back, and also across their shoulders, as well as prehensile tones, each ending with a bony knob that can be used like a grasping fingers. Aside from this, the two share only minor physical differences. This alone however was enough to drive the two races into almost a thousand years of constant war. Their civilization was driven by war, their culture, their life, and their technology all driven to war. As such their advances were driven far quicker then the others in the Sector
NOTES:
The Qwintoni are by far the classic “Warrior Race” driven by codes of conduct as much as lust for battle. Qwintonis make up by far the largest demographic of all armed services, both planet and space based. Tejlini by contrast are planners, trying to out think and out plan any opponent, anticipating any eventuality and then countering it. As such they often work in positions of power, and rarely fight on the front lines.

Trathalans: The planet Trathala, the third planet in the Shandary system; slightly smaller than Earth with an Oxygen heavy atmosphere and lower gravity. Trathala has one large moon, which causes a constant light during day and night due to its size. The people of Trathala are a mysterious race of Dragon like aliens; they stand on average from 6 to 7 feet tall. Because of the constant light from their moon, Trathalan’s are ‘omni-turnal’ able to go long periods without sleep and change their internal clocks at will. Most Trathalan have advance mental abilities such as telepathy, telekinesis and healing powers. Their people are also highly moralistic and religious, believing in a fundamental Pacifist ideology. Ceremony, meditation, and prayer dominate almost all aspects of life. The civilization itself is split into 13 major clans that are spread around the small world. Each clan is quite mistrusting of each other, but has had only minor skirmishes over the years. The tech level of the civilization, on the surface, barely appears to be that of medieval times.
NOTES:
Trathalans are both Xenophobic and Pacifists. They have only joined they UISC because the richness of their Asteroid belts forces them into Galactic affairs. Aside from diplomats, it is rare to ever see a Trathalan outside of their Homeworld, however, due to their mental capacities; they are invaluable as translators as they can often mentally ‘read’ what another race is saying. OOC NOTE
A closely guarded secret known to very few outside the planet is while the race appears primitive and peaceful, nearly 5000 years ago they were nearly as advanced as the other races of the sector. They had just begun to plan reach into the stars when all out Nuclear war utterly devastated their planet. In the space of a few days almost all signs of the civilization where reduced to dust.
This near genocide led to the fanatical pacifistic nature of the race today. Over the course of the following 5000 years almost all remaining signs of their past were slowly eliminated and buried.
The modern species is by no means luddites. They retain knowledge of advanced science and tech, however shun anything they do not see as utterly essential to living.

Spoiler

There is final race that dwells in The Sector, although it did not start there.

Thousands of years ago, a race known as the Skothian attained immense power and knowledge over all thought. They toyed amongst the stars and hurled massive chunks of their own planet into space to create spaceships for no other reason then to display their power.
This race, despite their power, or perhaps because of it, expanded slowly among the stars, making few other colonies. They were so confident and aragonite of their strength they saw little need to expand aggressively.
During this time, a religious sect began to grow in the belief that such power and arrogance would cause their races downfall. Predicting doomsday of their planet, they began constructing a massive Ark Ship to fill with all knowledge and science of their world. Seen as fanatics and dismissed as a cult, they were left alone to build their ship.
Their prediction sadly came true when another race came across the Skothians. On even levels of technology and size, the war was total attrition. The Skothians “won” but it left their world and people totally gutted and devastated. The massive power structures of their world began to fail, ships the size of mountains began to fall from orbit and decimated the planet below.
The religious sect saw their worse fears come true and left their galaxy behind forever.

Nearly 1000 years later they came upon another galaxy and young races. Jaded, filled with a sense of loss and yet, still self-superiority they found themselves worst of all…Bored.
They came upon the races of The Sector, and watched them for over 300 years. They revealed themselves first to the races of the Alliance to guide and help unite them. Knowing even back then that at some point they would need to fight on equal terms against the Tajlan Empire who would have easily over powered them.
At the end of the Tajlan War, it again was the Skothians who set the “terms” for the peace accords. No force dared argue with them and obeyed out of fear as much as a desire to end the war.

The Skothians, as they are today, exists only as the descendents from a doomsday religious cult. They feel all Sapient civilizations are doomed if their technology grows too far. They meddle in the races of the sector, wishing them to thrive and prosper, and yet restraining tech from them as much as possible.
They have one driving goal known simply as “The Plan” it is a belief they feel would institute a way for any sapient race to continue existence forever without fear of self destruction. The people of the Sector are in truth, nothing more then guinea pigs, a test group for this “Plan”

====================================================================UISC Member Worlds

"UISC Homeworlds

Quatonia, - Kol System.
Homeworld to the Quatonian People. Currently one of the most industrialized worlds of the UISC as well as one of the physically largest. Other then Conearians, few visit the surface due to it’s heavy gravity, and more and more industry is being moved into orbit.

Octona, - Andar System
Largely an Ocean world, and much smaller than Quatonia, Octona is considered much more “Species friendly” in being of a much lower gravity. The planet is often picked as the setting for most diplo,matic meetings between the three worlds.

Conerazra, - Cona System.
Only slightly smaller then Quatonia, it’s gravity is still higher then other UISC member worlds. The planet is also considered the most “Dirty” of the UISC Member worlds and relies heavily on fossil fuels for most planetary industry.

Trathala, - Shand System
Home to the Xenophobic Trathalans, little is known of it to outsiders other than the world itself has little to no modern industrial base as well as the smallest population of any UISC world. Because it is a member of the UISC, it still must contribute, and currently produces vast amounts of Food, Grain, and other consumables to other member worlds. Aside from the world itself, the Shand System also boasts twin Asteroid rings which are among the richest in the whole Sector. Two wars have been fought over or around them before the formation of the UISC.

Tajlan, Telos System.
Homeworld to what was the mighty Tajlan Empire. This planet is second only to Quatonia in raw Industrial output.

============ Secondary Worlds

Galacticus, Outer Edge of Shand System.
Built as a forward mining post by the original Tri-World Alliance, it became a Military fortress during the Tajlan Wars, and finally the largest Military shipyards of the UISC. While tiny in terms of planet size (slightly larger than the size of Mercury) it is a vastly important location both in terms of the Raw materials the planet processes and the shipyards in orbit.

Jahlin, - Telos System
Founded shortly before the first Tajlan War, Jahlin is a thriving colony. Located so close to it’s homeworld, the planet swells with excess population and already boasts a noticeable Industrial base.

Zenar Minor. - Zenar System.
The furthest as well as newest colony founded after the creation of the UISC. The planet boasts a wide variety of natural resources and minerals but it will be some time before a proper Industrial base is formed.
====================================

R.U.D.I. the Rampant AI.

Initial Creation
Shortly after the end of the second Tajlan War and the rise of the UISC, a large station was constructed that was meant to be both a neutral facility between the two forces as well as a central operations station for overseeing the new UISC command and operational structure.
In a sign of peace and cooperation, it was “strongly suggested” by the Skothians, that computer systems for this station, should be done as a joint venture between Imperial and Alliance scientists. At the time, as if by coincidence, both sides had been working on revolutionary and highly advanced systems.
The Tajlan Scientists had constructed an immense computer core more powerful then anything ever before it. It incorporated crystals they had found on a nearby world that seemed to enhance computer speed by unfathomable levels. Unknown to the Scientists, the crystals we’re part of an even older computer that took on the personality and characteristics of those around it. However at the time it had laid dormant… This changed when Quatoni scientists received the immense computer.
The Alliance too had been at work and had created an AI that seemed nearly self-aware. They had built it on the premise of having it behave, not like a computer, but like a “person” trying to teach it emotions and how to act upon them. The AI had been called "RUDI" or R.eferential U.niversal D.igital I.ndexer
Without thinking of the consequences, the Quatoni Scientists downloaded their AI into the Tejlini Supercomputer. The mingling of absorbed personality traits and intense AI laid to the creation of a Sapient AI that within several minuets had logarithmically increased in size until it had found itself with access to virtually every military computer within the UISC.

Growth and Development
As the AI Stabelized, it’s ‘emotions’ began to mature and influence it. It was the generation of true emotions, feelings and other “Human” traits that caused it to question what it saw as the “traditional” path of AI’s, IE, going “SKYNET” and conquering it’s creators.
Luckily for the Organics of the sector, the new AI considered itself born from the various races, and felt no ill will. It saw the others of the sector, as it’s “parents” and wished to further protect and help the different races to coexist

The AI, still calling itself “RUDI” was now irrevocably embedded it almost all mainframes and military networks. It felt it had “stolen” irreplaceable equipment and countless billions of dollars worth of machinery and wished to somehow pay the UISC back.
Using it’s intelligence, it began to create, and eventually patent, scores of new operating systems and electronic goods. Not just military, but entertainment and every day goods. It founded a manufacturing company, began to buy out smaller companies, and within a decade was a multi billionaire.

Currently, RUDI is seen as a celebrity. He has become so "Human" that many in the UISC seem to forget he is a powerful computer that is embedded into virtually every vital electronic system in the UISC. On the outside he seems a playful, "jolly" entity, however the truth of the matter is his Rampant intellect has caused him to think, not in decades or centuries, but in thousands and even millions of years.
He is an entity that worries about the Heat Death of the universe and sees all creation as a brief fleeting experience. Part of what drives him to both preserve and "enjoy" life is the utter certainty that at some point all life will end.
All of his current industry and public PR is a slow start to what he hopes will be a way to protect his creators for as long as the universe remains.

Last edited by Crossroads Inc. on 2012-04-14 12:59am, edited 3 times in total.

In the year 2036, on the homeworld of Tok, the inhabitants were looking to expand into their solar system and beyond. Scientist still hadn't figured out how to negate the effects of microgravity in space. So, the the Joint Unification of Space Agencies teamed up with the Conglomeration of Mining Companies and formed the Outer Mining Nexus Installation with the express interest of developing autonomous robotics driven by an artificially intelligent probe to provide resources for expansion and one day, co-planetary habitation.

Tok is the 5th planet from it's host star, Da'h, Which means Life and is surrounded by 3 moons, Io, Eya, and Ma'a. Io is by far the largest of the moons; roughly 1/4 the size of Tok itself. Eya is the second largest (1/18 Tok) and is populated with single celled organisms. Eya has been explored intensely for the last 75 years since space exploration began. Most of the organisms found on Eya are medicinal in use. Ma'a is a tiny asteroid (1/100 Tok) that technically is satellite to Io.

Early on in the Tok history, the beings there had developed an appreciation and sense of resepct for all creatures. A harmonious balance with nature was the driving force for all Tokian culture. That belief system was integrated into the positronic core of the first AI being by 2069. Already, great advancements in robotics and space travel engines had been developed and sent out to find the richest mining deposits in the solar system. Two remote controlled robotic Io mining bases were established in 2050 as early test beds for the mining industry.

2071, marked the launch of SAB (Synoptic Artificial Brain) to Io to make contact with the robots and assume control. SAB's mission was to utilize programmed parameters to continue the mining operations and set up manufacturing facilities to build more robots as mining equipment and continue seeding and mining the other bodies in the Da'h system.

For over 50 years the success of the SAB/OMNI system harolded a new era of prosperity for the Tokians. As scientist came closer to mitigating the effects of microgravity as well as the recent confirmation of the gravity force carrier (graviton); plans were soon drawn up to begin inter-solar colonization.

2025, a massive object entered the Tok atmosphere and embeded itself into the highest peak on the northern pole. Some local scientist working in the area seen the event and dismissed it as cosmic debree or another artificial satellite that fell out of orbit. The rest of the population never . Several months went by and the event was all but forgotten.

Unbeknownst to the Tokians, SAB was carrying out orders and came to Tok for mining. New equipment and machinery was being constructed within the subterranian complex that landed almost a year ago. Hordes of new designs surfaced to uphold the preservation law programmed early on in the artifical brain.

A great war broke out. The planets offensive and defensive weapons were no match for the machines. They easily acquired mutiple military installations, as well as civilian manufacturing facilities. Their ability to reproduce en mass allowed for a relatively quick victory. Curiously enough, no Tokian died from the hands of the machines; instead, while the indigineous population destroyed many of the invaders, SAB devised multiple techniques that rendered them incapacitated. Within 10 years the planet was transformed.

Great care was taken to remove any non-natural items (structures, roadways, etc) and have them mined via recycling. This allowed the surface of the planet to be retaken by the natural wildlife that once thrived there. The sentient species were all collected and moved underground; their bodies were stored in bio-electric chambers to contribute to the expansion of OMNI.

Soon after, SAB began experimenting with those stored in the chambers. Special robots were constructed to house the soul source of Tokians and allow them to work for the OMNI; these were called Shells. The key programming component that developed was the immediate recall subroutine. Any Shell that refused to follow the commands of the SAB AI had their souls immediately recalled to their body.

Rapid advancements in technology saw the OMNI reach their second star system by (which was the next nearest at only 5.23LY away) 2114. SAB replicated itself and sent another team of robotic mining equipment. Each new system that was taken over saw another replicant of SAB, OMNI continued to spread and grow. Any system with sentient life was taken over in the exact same fashion as Tok.

Map Considerations

Grid Layout (per Sector Cost):

1 3 1
5 7 5
1 3 1

I honestly don't care where I am placed on the map...so whatever fit's the best is fine with me.

Special Note: Robotic Races are not confined to habitialbe planets. Most (~90%) are working with automated mining bots (wich are included in the robot pop) amongst the other planets, moons, and etc in their respective sectors.

The Republic of New Romulus is a micronation with three star systems, 3 NCPs, 6,000 GDP, and a population of 2 billion people. The population is a mix of Romulans, Remans, AIs, and aliens. It has a trade route with The Republic of Arcadia.

It was founded when a Romulan warbird entered an alternate reality. The crew settled on a nearby habitable world, and the colony has expanded to include three star systems. A major event in their history was the Zaret Uprising. The colony had initially been a military dictatorship, but an officer named Zaret lead a mutiny against her commanding officer, freeing the Reman slaves who then allied with her. The constitution and the Senate were created by the victorious rebels shortly thereafter.

It is a democracy with an elected head of state and senate and a constitution that protects the rights of all intelligent beings. It is mostly peaceful, although there have been some problems with the black market and terrorist groups. It is isolationist, though not completely.

The military consists of the Army, the Reman Guard, the Intelligence Agency, and the Star Fleet. Their forces are:

SPACE VIKINGS (yes, I don’t have another name for them yet…any ideas?)

3 NCP (rogue mid-range sector)

$6,000 GDP
*************

History:

Originally the second Mid-Range sector of the Republic, this sector broke off some 200 years ago. They were very expansionist and Xenophobic, and felt that Arcadia should be raiding and pillaging anyone who was in range. They soon took up a mantle of being SPACE VIKINGS, the name coming from the people who were raided (some historians believe it originated in Sol, but no one in the Republic is sure). The newly christened SPACE VIKINGS are fiercely independent, resisting any moves to rejoin Arcadia, and constantly raid nearby systems. There are some rumors that they run the planet Tankhalla (OOC: assuming that’s the name and it is next to the VIKINGS), but it isn’t clear for sure.

One thing is clear though…the SPACE VIKINGS are practically run by the terrorist group Arcadia First. Because of this, they very rarely attack Republic shipping, but anyone else is free game. It is rumored that AF and the SPACE VIKINGS are actually one and the same, but it is just a rumor since no one can get into their sector.

SPACE VIKING Navy:

($4,000)

10 point Corvette

• Loki Class

• Similar to Serana class in design and mission

• 50 ($500)

25 point Frigate

• Oscar Class

• Formerly of the Arcadian Navy…stolen from mothball fleets across the Republic

• 31 ($775)

60 point Destroyer

• Gustav class

• Small Destroyer compared to the Arcadian versions, but still a good-sized ship. (UNSC Destroyer clone)

• 16 ($960)

120-point Cruiser

• Odin Class

• Largest SPACE VIKING ship to be produced in ‘decent’ numbers. Asgard Daniel Jackson class ship in appearance (from Stargate for those who don’t know).

• 7 ($840)

200 point Battleship

• Legion Class

• AFS Centurion

• Flagship for Arcadia First, and also the largest warship in the SPACE VIKING Navy. It is a 200-year-old ship stolen from an Arcadian mothball fleet, and refitted with modern weapons. (Victory Star Destroyer clone).

• 1 (200 points)

SPACE VIKINGS Army: ($2,000)

VIKING Hoard:

100,000/x$:

200 million troops (X1 Equipment)

(All of this is very tentative, so let me know if I botched something)

Thunderhawk Fighter: standard single-seat fighter used by the Dwarven Conclave. Multiple weapon hardpoints on underside allow for modular loadouts of weaponry and for greater maneuverability and speed within atmospheres upon deployment of said weapons. Powerful pulse lasers within fore-mounted segments allow for significant dogfighting capability even after expending missiles and torpedoes. Points: 0.5

Ranger Scout: The smallest FTL-capable military vessel fielded by the Conclave Navy. In accordance with Dwarven nature, it is a durable and efficient vessel designed to operate as a scout, picket ship, and local defender in areas otherwise without support. Though somewhat cramped, the Rangers have a surprising range and firepower enough to hold their own against most typical raiding vessels. Points: 10

Searcher: Originally designed as a civilian vessel for purposes of exploration and prospecting, these frigates have been adopted by the military for those roles and for operating as long-range communications vessels. With their advanced communications and analytical capabilities, the Searchers have proven to be of critical value to the Conclave's efforts to maintain stability in their own sectors and find new caches of exploitable resources outside of Conclave domains. Lightly-armed and only moderately well-armored, Searchers are rarely knowingly deployed into a pitched battle. Points: 15

Celestra: A destroyer-sized merchant marine bulk freighter with dubious trans-atmospheric capability. When in naval service, and even when not, Dwarven rogue traders will take extra effort to augment the standard shielding and armor plating to endure trips through asteroid fields and pirate ambushes. Bootleg weapons systems and pieces-parts obtained from friendly clients provide an offensive capability that the vessels were never intended to possess. Points: 15

Guardian: Classified as a “destroyer” by the Conclave navy, the Guardian is the favorite son of the fleets. Excellent speed and durability combine with pinpoint accuracy with ample firepower to make the Guardians a force to be reckoned with. Points: 75

Defender: If the Guardians are the destroyers of the navy, the Defenders are the Cruisers. Larger and better armed and armored than their smaller cousins, the Defenders lend to the support and defense of the carrier-type ships of the fleet and also take flagship roles in smaller flotillas. Points: 100

Protector: A latecomer to the Conclave Navy, the Protector was designed to fill the gap created by a lack of suitable numbers of Battlestars to provide full coverage for the entirety of Conclave space when the Forge Fleet is called into service. With the firepower and protection of a Defender with the capability to launch 100 fightercraft, the Protectors serve as a sort of demi-battleship and backup to their larger brothers. Points: 150+50

Tiger: A battleship typically created from the salvaged hulls of retired Battlestars and mega-haulers, the Tigers were stripped of their outboard carrier arms and a fifth of their length and mass before being refitted with an incredible array of heavy weaponry and outfitted with the finest armor and shielding available. Though few in number, the Tigers are relied upon to be the tip of the spear in shattering enemy fleets. Points: 300

Battlestar: Named after a variety of flanged mace used by ancient Dwarves, this hybrid battleship-carrier is the strongest weapon in the Dwarven arsenal. One hundred Thunderhawk fighters are housed in each of the two large outrigger bays of the vessel, referred to as TL/BR Arms (Tube-Launch, Bay Recovery). Formidable armor, shields, and internal damage control systems make the vessel an extremely hard nut to crack, while the vessel can reach out and do impressive damage with its main weaponry and multitudes of point defense systems. Battlestars are fleet flagships and limited in both number and deployment, but remain the face of the Conclave Navy. Points: 400/100

Conclave Marines: The only non-militia standing army at the start of SDNW5, The Conclave marines are a highly-trained , highly-equipped core of grizzled veterans who provide support to the multitude of mining sites as well as training for the large planetary militia forces scattered throughout the Dwarven Conclave. (20,000/$, x5 = $5 per 20,000)

What are they? Dwarves. They start off as off-the-shelf generic fantasy Dwarves as seen in virtually every fantasy product since Tolkien first had them scuff up Bilbo's door. These dwarves are a bit taller and their natures have changed to some degree, but their essence is very much the Dwarves that we all know and love with some alterations here and there. They look like Dwarves, averaging around five feet tall, mostly bearded males and thick of bone and muscle.

Critical Differences? They're far more tame in their habits than traditional fantasy Dwarves. There is little drinking to excess among most of their kind, boisterous behavior is a rarity, and they aren't prone to swearing multi-generational grudges against anyone who takes their parking place. They are, however, still a stalwart and grim folk. They are still creatures who value a work ethic and simple utility over frills and thrills. They still thrive as miners and craftsmen without peer. They still feel most comfortable when they have strong stone above their heads, though few still have that luxury.

Ship Appearance: The warships of the Conclave Navy have been taken from Todd Boyce's designs made for Babylon 5 Wars version of the original Battle Galactica and the Galactica itself. Like Dwarves themselves, these are solid, study designs lacking in frilly nonsense. The Thunderhawk fighter is none other than the Earth Defense Starfighter from the Buck Rogers TV series of the 1980s. Incidentally, that fighter was the original design for the Galactica series before the Viper was chosen instead.

Military Garb:
Planetary militia are decked out in light hardsuits, greatcoats, helmets, and a multitude of weapons and vehicles. There's a dual-use aspect to Dwarven wargear where a keen eye can see how the equipment they use can be transitioned into the sort of heavy industrial applications that Dwarves are known to excel.

The Conclave marines take the hardsuits a step further, going with equipment not unlike the armor and weapons used in the Mass Effect games. Sturdy, effective, and reliable are watchwords for the Dwarven Conclaves, and that gear certainly matches the requirements.

Government:
The Dwarven Conclaves are governed by, yes, Conclaves, or meetings of representatives chosen by their peers to provide oversight on matters deemed necessary for such meetings to be held. On day to day matters, a well-regulated administrative authority will handle whatever it is that needs handled, on local, regional, planetary, or Conclave-wide levels as is appropriate. There is no single ruler to the Conclave, though each of the five original worlds have an elected senior administrator as well as an ambassador at the homeworld. Other Conclave worlds dispatch ambassadors and have their own representative governments, with the composition varying from case to case.

Survivor's Guilt:
For whatever reason (still working it out), the Dwarves are the last survivors of their magical, mystical fantasy worlds. All the Elves and Orcs and unicorns and talking pandas and kobolds and Illithids... they're all gone and only their legends remain. Over the course of the game, the Dwarves will address how this all came to be, but they have one whopping case of survivor's guilt ingrained into their genetic structure. This condition manifests in multiple ways, but principally it serves to quash their more self-serving tendencies and gives them something along the lines of a natural grim stoicism to their demeanors. Perhaps their distaste for the finer things in life is because they knew their ancestors lived in a world of the finest things that is gone forever? We'll see.

Basilica Class Flagship - $500 - 6 - $3000
An ugly, unsubtle brick of armor and forward gun ports, the Basilica provides superheavy fire support and very well-defended command and control for an entire fleet, whilst still able to keep up with fleet maneuvers.

Sipahi Class Battleship - $150 - 100- $15000
Sleek, deadly, and utilitarian all at once, the Sipahi Class is the most potent symbol of the new fleet that taxed the Klavostani budget terribly alongside the construction of so many new space habitats and two new Warp Gates. A narrow forward silhouette presents enemies with six of the heaviest energy weapons the Sultanate can build - while nothing like a Chamarran Beam Cannon, close study of those exotic weapons suggested a few new wrinkles to conventional designs.

Scimitar Class Cruiser - $60 - 250- $15000
Looking very much like its bigger brother the Sipahi, the Scimitar provides much of the bulk of the Klavostani fleet, strong enough to engage its average opponents, especially when in working together in squadrons. Carrying six main forward guns also, of a lesser calibre, the Scimitar also has, like all its fleetmates, many multipurpose missile tubes and broadside weapons to supplement and cover its forward armament.

Barbarossa Class Destroyer- $30 - 200- $6000
Latest in a long proud lineage of destroyer designs serving the Sultanate, the Barbarossa sees far less production and action than its predecessors. With the once-healthy mercenary market for lightweight warships in Klavostan shattered by the Chamarran invasion, Scumdoggian skullduggery, and lack of Ork pirates, the weight class that used to garner so much affection is now built only reluctantly. The destroyer-weight vessel's vulnerability to hard-hitting Chamarran ships often keeps it from being on the front line of battle, but still the Barbarossa serves those roles only a Destroyer can adequately fill.

Djinni Class Stealth Scout - $15 - 200- $3000
Bristling with sensor antennae and plated with the latest stealth coatings, the Djinni is the hidden eyes and ears of the Klavostani fleet. Aware of the numerical superiority of their enemies, the Royal Klavostani Star Navy has to intelligently concentrate itself for battle at the right place and time, and only with accurate information can that be done. Armed with more missiles and mines than beams, the Djinni can do its best to ward off an attacker before disappearing again, or to perhaps reap a toll on defenseless vessels.

Ground Forces
$10,000

Last edited by KlavoHunter on 2012-06-23 03:27pm, edited 6 times in total.

"The 4th Earl of Hereford led the fight on the bridge, but he and his men were caught in the arrow fire. Then one of de Harclay's pikemen, concealed beneath the bridge, thrust upwards between the planks and skewered the Earl of Hereford through the anus, twisting the head of the iron pike into his intestines. His dying screams turned the advance into a panic."'

I've tweaked some of my ship classes a bit on further consideration since my last post on this subject- mostly a function of adapting to the carrier rules. Note that I will be spending points on some ships which are still in the building slips- they are not complete or ready for service. I'm still paying points for them; that ties into the naval construction rules, which I have not yet addressed.

250-pt Ion Battlecruiser
• Design variant based off Vindicator-class ion dreadnought.
• Hulls are structurally complete but currently undergoing modification on the building slips, to be refitted with [CLASSIFIED "DAM OF LANCES," LEVEL BURN BEFORE READING]
• Aurora-class

650-pt Ion Dreadnought
• Next generation line combatant, deliberately intended to match or overpower most probable opponents' largest capital units one on one
• First wave of hulls are still under construction and will be for some time.
• Vindicator-classFleet Formations:

Since I have ten sectors, which I infer to contain fifty star systems, I should purchase enough ships to form fifty System Control Groups. This will cost me 330*50 = 16500$, leaving me with a budget of 31500$.

Total cost: 1175 points. I have seven fast divisions, leaving me with a budget of 3425$.

This gets spent on odds and ends, and ships under construction but not finished...Odds and Ends of SpaceSec:

OK. First off we have the first production run of Vindicator-class dreadnoughts and Aurora-class battlecruisers designed with the new Mark XV ion cannon. The Auroras' hulls are completed pending installation of CLASSIFIED BURN BEFORE READING OK you all know the Umerians are working on AI for them. They are, as now completed, 250-point warships; the upgrades are still waiting.

So the first build run of six Auroras costs 1500 points and is not yet ready for prime time. That leaves me with 1925$.

The first build run of three Vindicators is still a work in progress- they've been under construction for about a year, but it'll take another 24 months to finish them if we go by the construction times in the original. I'm going to "pay down" the costs of those ships year by year as I build them, so for now assume 250$ apiece has been spent on the hulls- but they're not finished, engines and guns are not installed and so on. But man are they going to kick ass when they're finished. That leaves me with 1175$.

Now what?

For one, the Technocracy of Umeria does not have its stealth ships. These ships are not assigned to deep reconnaissance and passive observation missions. Some of them are not nearly invisible intelligence-collecting parasite vessels dropped off by nearly as invisible tenders, and they don't look at all like mutant versions of my standard FTL gunboat-cutters or their tenders. Others are most certainly not sneaky ships armed with nuclear torpedoes or extended-range strategic bombardment versions thereof.

While we're at it, I have a space elevator in Brooklyn to sell you, there is no government conspiracy to cover up the existence of mysterious grey space aliens, and the Bermuda Tetrahedron is a hoax. Oh, and I'm from the Ministry of Welfare, and I'm here to help.

This nonexistent fleet of nonexistent stealth ships most certainly is NOT worth 500 points, and is definitely NOT heavily overworked and constantly grumbling (quietly) about how high their deployment cycle is.

So, that leaves me with 675$.

I allocate about 200$ of that to half-dollar cutters, which represent various training squadrons, patrol units allocated permanently to minor stations, and so on. That leaves me with 475$.

Hm. I've covered my newest ships (so new the crazy glue hasn't set yet); what about my oldest? Ships which are functionally out of date in terms of their ability to participate in major fleet operations, but which are still worth keeping around for flag showing or duking it out with poorly equipped opponents?

I bring up two classes of those, dredged from the depths of my imagination in SDNW4: the FF-6700 series frigate, and the Province-class cruiser. The FF-6700s are simply old, noticeably so; SpaceSec uses modular ship designs that can be upgraded repeatedly with "plug and play" components but there are limits. Back in the day (like, sixty years ago) they'd be worth 30 points or more, but they're just not worth that much now. The hull frames are worn out somewhat, the latest upgrades in fire control and whatnot just can't be retrofitted onto them, and so on.

The Provinces are even older, dating back to roughly the turn of the last century. What keeps them alive is that they were built very sturdy, they were built in huge numbers, and (compared to modern Umerian CLs) they are big nasty bruisers. They predate SpaceSec's current ship designation scheme, and measured in jiggawatts their armament is very heavy and their defensive strength is pretty high. They're myopic, they're slow, but they're pretty good for wandering into a small pirate base and brutally mauling all comers.

Even so, a lot of them have been retired (conveniently providing a supply of spare parts for the ones kept in service, sort of like how the Air Force plans to keep flying B-52s until 2045 or whatever. And a lot of them were captured by the Browncoats in isolated frontier posts during the 3391 civil war, or have been sold off to micronations who only looked at LOL KILOTONS and didn't bother to figure out whether the ships had the long range and high sensor resolution to use them all that well. So only a few remain in service, as opposed to having been retired to demilitarized museum status, scrapped, blown up, converted into the core of an orbital fort, or whatever. Call it...

4x60pt Provinces
10x22pt FF-6700s

That takes up 460 points, leaving me with fifteen to go. What will I do... I know just the thing. A REAL museum piece, but a strange one, and a sign of how weird the Umerians can be about certain things.

The only intact survivor of the Umerian Chrome Golden Age, the last of the atomic rocket cruisers of the Stellar Patrol, a link to the glorious days of ray guns and slide rules and heroic chain-smoking adventurer-engineers and rocketships that landed on their tailfins as God and Robert Heinlein meant them too...

USS Illustrious.

Back in the day, she was indeed one of the Patrol's long range heavy hitters, back when hyperdrives were slower. After the Chrome Age came to an end with a sudden infusion of grimdark and invasion, Illustrious fought heroically in most of the major defensive battles of that war.

This is the Umerian equivalent to, say, HMS Victory, in other words. Or perhaps more accurately, USS Constitution. The ship was maintained for long periods as the site of SpaceSec's advanced nucleonics school, with what is now a unique example of Chrome Age atomic-pile technology as her main reactor. Even today, long centuries later, the atomic rocket cruiser is still kept up in FTL-capable condition, although painfully slow in normal space by modern standards and well behind the curve in hyper. She is occasionally taken out on tours for morale purposes, possibly to prove a point.

Her original main antiship missiles would be rather pointless these days and haven't been built in centuries anyhow, but SpaceSec keeps finding the money to jury-rig the old launchers for something, currently bundles of the normally fighterweight Galia antiship missile, modified to be fire-and-forget since Illustrious lacks the guidance hardware.

SpaceSec would not seriously consider dispatching Illustrious into a fight of any kind, and she normally only travels with naval escorts for protection, symbolism, and/or providing a tow if necessary. However, the ship is armed and potentially dangerous, should she ever have occasion to launch one last missile barrage.

Umeria is one of the relatively few modern nations that practices conscription; conscripts go into Line units. Line formations are those deemed effective enough to be worthwhile in major military campaigns, but not for high-intensity operations. They spend a lot of time garrisoning population centers, maintaining civil order (Umeria does not draw a firm distinction between civil and military police), working on infrastructure projects, staffing logistics commands, maintaining ordnance depots, and getting a disproportionate share of the scut-work on military bases.

In warfare, Line troops lack power armor, relying instead on "soft" body armor with attachable environmental protection. Operating outside near-Terran environments or under NBC conditions presents them with serious difficulties, but it can be and is done when necessary. They rely heavily on mechanized support: massed artillery, armor, and orbital fire.

Doctrine favors "materiel wave" offensives: the Line army's artillery corps drowns strong enemy resistance in bombardment, while large armored units engage them with direct fire and break them up for the infantry. GroundSec prefers to avoid massed infantry attacks, especially where superheavy ground units or elite enemy infantry may appear, to avoid massively disparate casualty ratios. Maneuver warfare is usually the province of the spacemobile Intervention and Strike formations.

Standard infantry armament is the atomic disintegrator ray gun, a continuous-beam energy weapon which has changed very little since the Chrome Age, except in ergonomics and shininess.

500 Million Assault Troops (100000/$, x1 equipment)

Assault troops are equipped more or less as Line formations, but are recruited mostly from volunteers, with draftees being assigned only to fill out technical specialist slots. GroundSec prefers to rely on Assault units for full-scale warfare and equips them accordingly, so proportions of artillery, heavy armor, and infantry heavy weapons tend to be higher.

Despite the name, Assault troops are often redeployed to planets facing invasion or civil unrest, as they are generally deemed to be more worth the effort of shipping across interstellar distances.

100 Million Intervention Troops (50000/$, x2 equipment)

Intervention units form the first wave of a large scale Umerian space-to-ground assault, typically travelling in lightly protected troopships rather than the heavily armed strike cruisers. They are well trained and fairly well equipped by the standards of ordinary human soldiers, but lack the extraordinary elan or physical enhancement found in the highest-tier ground units.

Intervention troops field advanced heavy weapons, often similar to those used by Strike formations, though in more budget-sensitive designs a step back from the bleeding edge. They enjoy extensive AFV support, in contrast to the Strike units which are often optimized for spacemobile warfare at the expense of the armored component. Intervention infantry deploy in light power armor that is fully rated for NBC battlefields and most semi-habitable environments; vacuum-compatibility can be achieved with limited modifications.

The Technocracy maintains enough Intervention troops to mount a lightning planetary campaign on any world they anticipate needing to invade on short notice, but this does not include heavily defended core worlds of neighboring stellar powers, which they would only expect to invade on long notice (i.e. long enough to bring up Line and Assault units).

1 Million StrikeTroops (30000/$, x15 equipment)

Strike units include the Umerian special forces and elite ground formations of the highest caliber. They are mostly used for space-to-ground or space-to-space operations where ships must be capable of surviving an opposed landing, prohibiting the use of large thin-skinned landers. Strike units include soldiers in very advanced powered armor, highly sophisticated armored fighting vehicles, or the formidable Umerian combat drones.

Tactically, Strike formations are meant to be assigned specific, small scale objectives that factor in their limited manpower. They are often deployed from SpaceSec's strike cruisers to capture or destroy key targets in preparation for a larger ground assault, or for hit and run raids against remote targets. There are approximately one million Strike troops (including battle drones and AFV crews as soldiers) in operation at any one time.

The Strike formations are among the few truly high-end military units in the galaxy to accept unaugmented recruits. Aside from occasional low-order neural interfaces and fluke gene-boosts inherited from their ancestors, Strike troops would not seem out of place on 20th century Nova Terra or Earth as individuals.

At the periphery of the great shoals near Umeria lies the Sanctum, a bustling techno-theocracy where the gods and their chosen messengers strive to defend against the Great Enemy from the Galactic East.

The Drax are a species divided. The highest ranks are those that have transformed into massive winged dragons, and just below them are the smaller and weaker, yet still impressive, drakes; these species make up the highest castes of Drax society. The lower castes are bipedal and lead by the winged Draconians, below them are the flightless Draconians, and below al other castes are the smallest and weakest members known as Wyrmlings.

As might be expected the Dragons and the Drakes live in splendour roaming free over vast stretches of land or commanding large spaceships with massive domed living areas. The Draconians and Wrymlings are the workers, slaves, and soldiers of the empire living in cramped and often unpleasant conditions. Due to this members of this race always competing for power in the hopes that they might make the leap to a higher, more respected, form.

These living conditions would be unacceptable even for the lowest members of the Drax, if not for the fact that upward mobility, while rare, is possible for those who can create the conditions required for metamorphosis. This usually requires gaining enough stored fat and foodtsuffs to survive the transformation as well as followers to defend them while they undergo the change. This generally leads two types of Drax to sucess. The strongest, who transform in some lonely corner after stealing the required food, and the charmer who is raised up by his peers and guarded closely by those that hope to rise up after their chosen leader.

The name of this world roughly translates to All Dragon's Nesting Grounds and was given to the world when the Drax discovered that other worlds existed. Before this time the world had no name as each Dragon named his hunting grounds as he saw fit and respect the rights of his peers to do the same.

Like their society the fleet is dvided into haves and have-nots. The largest ships are well made, well crewed, and highy prized, then there is a large gap and the smaller vessels are often deemed expenable as are their crews.

Dragon's Shadow

On worlds they control everything knows to respect, if not fear, a dragon's shadow; the ship they named it after is said to cause much the same effect in the races that encounter it. This is due to the size, both for intimidation and the ability to house something as large as a drake in relative comfort; the weapons, designed to do to other ships what a dragons fangs do to lesser creatures; and the shields, designed to be as powerful as a dragon's hide. In the encounters this class of ship has been in so far, they have lived up to expectations.

Cost: 1,000 LGU

Drake's Fang

The smaller cousin of the smaller Dragon's Shadow class of starships. These are built in the same style as their larger cousins, but are scaled down in both size and weapons output.

Cost: 500 LGU

Flying Nest

This class of ships is on the same scale as the Drake's Fang class of ship but is lightly armed and nearly unshielded. This ship is too large to be commanded by anything less than a drake, yet most drakes shun this command owing to the fact that it relies on masses of fighters to score kills. Still when faced with command of an even smaller vessel many take this posting in hopes of gaining a position of higher standing later.

The smallest command that an average drake will be assigned to this class of ship forms the mainstay of the Drax fleet. Large enough to sustain operations away from support they can be found in roles ranging from escorting larger ships to attacking pirate bases. This class of ship also carries a small fighter force for recon and customs duties.

Carrier Capacity: 10 Tail Sting Heavy Fighters, 25 Swarm Fighters

Cost: 125 LGU

Nest Leader

A ship smaller than a Drake's Flight class vessel, but still able to handle most of the same roles. This is the largest ship that a winged draconian can expect to command.

Carrier Capacity: 10 Swarm Fighters

Cost: 75 LGU

Nest Defense

A smaller ship that is often configured for a single roll based on expected need. These roles can vary from scouting missions, to point defense. In most configurations this class carries a pair of gunships.

Carrier Capacity: 2 Drax Claw Gunships

Cost: 50 LGU

Scaled Legion

The smallest class of ship expected to operate independently and the largest class of ship typically commanded by a flightless draconian. These ships are used as fleet screens or for light combat zones.

Carrier Capacity: 2 Tail Sting Heavy Fighters

Cost: 30 LGU

Messenger Flight

A sleek vessel that is always commanded by a winged draconian. These are used to ferry important cargo and drake diplomats from place to place. As such they are fitted with VR links so the drakes can spend the trip distracted from their relative confinement.

Cost: 10 LGU

Drax Claw

A gunboat with a crew of five these are the heaviest non-hyperdrive capable starships in the Drax fleet. Some are fitted with Heim drives for short hops, but most use that space to store additional firepower or sheild generators.

Cost: 3 LGU

Tail Sting

A large two man fighter that is the weakest class of ship that is commanded by a draconian. All of the lesser fighters are crewed by wyrmlings.

Cost: 0.5 LGU

Swarm

A small crude fighter that is never the less effective in large numbers. Though fatality rates are high wyrmlings willing to crew them are easy to find as it offers a quick way to enough food to make the change to a draconian.

Cost: 0.1 LGU

Military Listing: Special Purpose Ships

Testbed Drake's Flight Replacement: XC-DC04 & XC-DC04

This is a pair of ships designed as testbeds for new technology that will eventually be used to update the Drake's Flight-class of warships. These consist of a slightly redesigned hull with more effiecient power plants and updated electronics. They are being tested alongside several new fighter and gunship designs that should be carried by the new designs.

Cost: 135 LGU

Long Range Exploration Vessels: LR07, LR08, and LR09

These are a trio of exploration vessels designed to seek out worlds within Drax space that might be suitable for terraforming. This is a new initiative for the Drax who have simply been seeking out worlds already suitable to their use and ignoring sectors without such planets. This iniative is being spearheaded by a trio of drakes who seek advancement through opening up more land to advance into. At least that's the cover story, in reality these ships are designed with stealth detection in mind and will be tested against the new Silent Rake gunships in an extended deep space test program.

Cost: 25 LGU

Silent Rake Gunships

The Silent Rake is a new generation of heavy gunship with a crew of six. It is roughly the same size as the Drax Claw vessel it is intended to replace but much upgraded. The most significant change is the addition of a stealth module as well as more accurate targeting sensors.

Cost: 5 LGU

Tail Sting B

This is an upgrade package for the Tail Sting fighter. It will add increased compatability with multiple weapons pods and incorporate some of the same targeting upgrades as are being tested on the Silent Rake gunships. It is in competition with the Tail Sting C upgrade package.

Cost: 0.75 LGU

Tail Sting C

This is an upgrade package for the Tail Sting fighter. It will considerably boost engine thrust and reactor output allowing the fighter to carry heavier laser cannons. It is in competition with the Tail Sting B upgrade package.

Cost: 0.75 LGU

Military Listing: Ground Forces

Wyrmling Conscripts

This is the first line of defense for the Drax empire. It consists of a near endless supply of rush trained conscripts moving to battle in simple rugged transports and tanks and armed with simple gear. While reliable, the gear and training of these units is well below galactic standards. These forces are effective only in large numbers and are rarely relied upon to fight unsupported.

Cost: 300,000/$Gear Rating: 0.5

Wyrmling Infantry

These are the wyrmlings that were deemed to be in the upper third of the class while going through training. They are trained for an additional length of time and given gear that preforms on par with galactic standards. Still they are hardly an inspired fighting force and are mostly used to herd the lesser quality wyrmlings into positions.

Cost: 150,000/$Gear Rating: 1

Draconian Infantry

Comprised of draconians, both winged and wingless, that rose from the ranks of wyrmlings below them this is the first force that, soldier for soldier, performs to galactic standards. These are the forces that are shuttled around to fill gaps in the line that the wyrmlings can't be trusted to fill.

Cost: 75,000/$Gear Rating: 1

Draconian Gliders

This is the first of the elite units in the Drax planetary forces. These units are comprised of specially trained and equiped winged draconians. Each group is trained for different operations, but all are given the equipment and training to succeed where others would fail.

Cost: 25,000/$Gear Rating: 3

Drake Guard

The most elite unit that commonly takes the field. This consists of drakes who, hoping to use it for a quick advancement to dragon, forgo their lands and join a military unit. Unlike the Draconian Gliders, these units are rarely used in covert roles. Instead the drakes are inserted into form fitting suits with near starship grade armor and weaponry. These walking, and more frighteningly, flying tanks have been known to smash a flank with as few as a dozen drakes.

Cost: 5,000/$Gear Rating: 10

Dragons

A rare sight on the field of battle, a dragon who has been forced to fight on his own behalf is a fearful sight indeed. These angels of death are equiped much like the drakes only moreso. They have personal shield systems that deflect weapons meant for hardened bunkers, and with antigravity thrusters some have been known to break atmosphere and launch into a supersonic dive.